Pro-government newspaper announces: Details of special support package for retirees revealed

Declaring 2024 the Year of Retirees, AKP Chairman and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan first announced that the lowest pension had been increased to 10 thousand TL and that holiday bonuses had been raised from 2 thousand TL to 3 thousand TL.

As the Turkish Lira loses value day by day due to high inflation, the cost of living, and rising exchange rates, millions of retirees have been condemned to poverty-level wages.

While millions of retirees wait for their living conditions to be improved, the newspaper Sabah, known for its proximity to the government, has put forward an important claim regarding retirees.

According to the report, it has been learned that the first agenda item of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, which will begin its work in April, will be retirees. 

Measures to increase income and various discounts are being planned as a priority for retirees. Comprehensive work on the subject has begun in the relevant ministries and institutions. The regulation will be brought to the Parliament's agenda in April.

Here are the details of the work being done for retirees...

1-DISCOUNTS ON MUNICIPAL SERVICES

In this context, many issues such as discounts on water bills, free or discounted public transportation, and privileged access to municipal facilities will be addressed through protocols to be made with local governments for retirees. Here, retirees will be able to benefit from all services offered by the municipality as a privilege, either at a discount or for free.

2-ENERGY SUPPORT

Work is also underway to provide discounts on natural gas and electricity bills for all retirees, especially those with low pensions. With a protocol to be made with the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources on this issue, measures to reduce these expenses for retirees may be put into effect.

3-TRANSPORTATION SUPPORT

In addition to public transportation offered by municipalities, efforts are being made to ensure that retirees can benefit from other means of transportation at a discount or for free. At this point, privileges will be granted to retirees for plane and train tickets. The Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure will step in and complete its work for this.

4-HOUSING SUPPORT

Rent subsidies for retirees, especially in metropolitan cities, have also come to the agenda. Starting with low-income retirees, a certain amount of rent support will be provided to retirees. Local governments will also be involved in this matter. This support amount will be higher in metropolitan cities. Thus, a portion of the retirees' rent will be covered.

5-FINANCIAL SUPPORT

In this context, privileges will be granted for banking services for retirees through protocols to be made with banks. Public banks, in particular, as well as private banks will be involved. Issues such as access to credit, low-interest opportunities, free banking services, and increasing promotion amounts will be on the table.

6-VACATION SUPPORT

Public institutions will open their doors to retirees who cannot find the opportunity to go on vacation. Thus, retirees will have the opportunity to stay and vacation in public facilities in the regions they desire. In addition, through protocols to be made with tourism companies, vacation opportunities with discounts will be offered to retirees through special campaigns in holiday resorts.

7-WELFARE SHARE AND BASE SALARY

The flat-rate support applied to the base salary for retirees will be redetermined for the upcoming period. This increase will be brought to the table before July. Budget work will be carried out. In addition, changes to the base salary regulation and the pension calculation system are among the topics being studied.

ERDOĞAN HAD CONFESSED

Speaking at the Kütahya rally, AKP Chairman and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan explained why a flat-rate raise could not be given to retirees with the following words;

"Some people come out and provoke our retirees with their own logic by saying let's add 10 thousand lira or 7 thousand lira to pension salaries. We have 16 million retirees. Adding 7 thousand lira to pension salaries means adding 1.4 trillion lira from the budget; adding 10 thousand lira means transferring a resource of 1.9 trillion lira here.

I am not talking about the amount of current salaries. I am just explaining the cost of the additional increase expressed as 7 thousand or 10 thousand lira. Even if we didn't drive a single nail in our country throughout 2024 and transferred the entire investment budget here, it is not enough to cover this expense."